Dental apparatus



Oct. 22, 1929. J, M. cRAlGo DENTAL APPARATUS Filed Nov. 4. 1927 2 sheetsrheetI ff @f6 J. M. cRAlGo 1,732,790

DENTAL APPARATUS oct. 22, 1929,

Filed Nov'. 4, 1927 2 sheets-sheet gri/vento@ Patented 9ct. 22, 1929 UNITED STATES JOHN M. CRAIGO, F HARTFORD, connncfrcu'r, nssrenon fro nnwenn nencini) noWAN, on Ivnw vom; n. Y.

DENTAL APPARATUS Application led November 4, 192?.

The present invention relates to an apparatus or appliance which finds peculiar'adaptability in the dental art.

An aim of the invention is to provide an improved apparatus of a simple nature which may be employed for carrying out a variety of operations in dental work which hereto fore required separate instruments or tools.

A further aim of the invention is to provide a structure which may be employed as a hand tool capable of being held in and manipulated by one hand of the operator where the operations to be performed will permit of this, and to further provide an improved arrangement whereby the tool may be iiXedly mounted on a base or standard where the operations to be performed are such as to necessitate or require such mounting of the tool.

A still further aim of the invention is to provide a tool of this sort which is very simple in construction and arrangement which may be manufactured and sold at a relatively low cost and which is eiiiective in its various operations.

A still further aim of the invention is to provide an improved arrangement by means of which metal clasps may be very accurately and readily shaped. j

@ther objects will bein part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

l he invention accordingly consists in the features of construction7 combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

ln the accompanying drawings wherein I have shown illustrative embodiments of the invention Figure l is a side elevational view with parts broken away, of my improved apparatus, the same being shown in connection with the operation of swedging a clasp to shape;

lic. 2 is an enlarged view showing more or less diagrammatically the manner in which the swedging1 members are formed;

Fig. 3 is a view of my improved tool re- Serial No. 231,114.

moved from the pedestal or base, the upper end of the latter of which is shown; and

Fig. l is a front view of the tool shown in Fig. 3 secured to the base.

Referring to the drawings in detail, my improved hand tool is shown as having a pair of jaw members and 11 secured to a pair of levers 12 and 13 respectively provided with handles la and 15 respectively. These levers are pivotally connected together with a stud or bolt 16 positioned between the aws. The forward ends of the levers 12 and 13 are respectively connected to the jaws 10 and 11 by pivots or bolts 17 and 18. The jaws are so connected to the levers and are so operated thereby that they always remain in parallel ism to each other. In the present instance such parallel arrangement and movement are obtained by pivotally connecting each of the jaws to one of the levers and slidably connecting it to the other of the levers. For in stance, the jaw 11 is pivotally connected to the lever 12 as at 18 and is slidably connected to the lever 13 by means of a pin 19 extending through and working in a slot 2O in the rear end of the jaw 11. The other jaw 10 is piv oted to the lever 13 as at 17 and is slidably connected to the lever 12 by a pin 21 extending through and working in a slot 22 in the rear end of the jaw 10.

J In accordance with the present invention the jaw 10 is shorter than, that is, does not project forwardly as far as the jaw 11, the purpose of this arrangement being to permit two elements such as a punch and a die to be so mounted and carried by the respective jaw members that they can properly co-operate. In the present instance the forward overhanging portion of the jaw 11 is provided with a vertical opening 25 adapted to receive the shank of a tool element, which shank may be secured in place by a screw 26. The under face of the jaw about'the lower end of the opening 25 has a groove or seat 27 with paral lel sides. The forward end of the jaw 10 is provided with a longitudinally extending bore or opening 28 preferably at right angles to the opening 2F. The forward face of the jaw 10 has a vertical seat or groove 29 corresponding to the seat 27 and is disposed at right angles thereto and spaced inwardly or rearwardly thereof. For the purpose of permitting the tool to be secured in place on a base or support in a very ready manner, the jaw l()y has on its under side, preferably directly beneath the pivot 16, a longitudinally extending dove-tailed rib or gib 35.

I provide in combination with the hand tool described a support to which the tool may be clamped and in the present instance this support is illustrated as comprising a base 37 having a standard 38 arising therefrom. The upper endof this standard has a dove-tailed groove 36 adapted to slidably receivethe dove-tail 35 o the jaw 10. For the purpose of securing the tool in place a screw 39 may be provided.

Referring now morey speeitically to the embodiments shown in- Figs. l and 2, the apparai-tus: is illustrated as being set up for shaping a clasp so that it will accurately and properly fit a tooth to which it is to be applied. The jaw l0 is secured in place by .the screw 39;, The. jaw ll carries a tool element having a shank 40. a stem 4l and a die 42. The. base immediately beneath the open* ing 25g in the jaw 11 has a vertical opening 42 in which is mounted a lower tool element having a stem or shank 43 which carries a die 44 on: its upper end. The post or stem 43 'tits very tightly in the opening 42 and is held against rotation by a pin 45 litting in a notch 46' at the upper end of the opening, thus the die44 isvery securely held against movement.

lPositioned betweenv the dies 42 and 44 and havingv a vert-ical movement therebetween is an intermediate die 47 .which in the present illustrative.disclosure is in the `form ot a tooth which is the exact replica of the tooth in the mouth of the person in which the crown is to: bev applied.. This die tooth 47 is made in a separate machine.. ln the present instance i itis carried by a shank 48 secured in place by VThe stein 4l has a bolster provided y portion 52 with parallel sides adapted to lit a screw 49 in the upper end of a post 50 mounted ter sliding movement in an opening 5Min the base.. This opening 5l is parallel to the line oitmovement of the upper die 42. with a snugly in the seat 47 of the upper jaw in order to. prevent the upper tool `element from rotating. The post 50 and the opening 2l in which. it slides are preferably non-circular, for instance, they are square in order that the postv together with the parts carried thereby vcannot turn.

rIihe manner in whichA the apparatus shown 5 in Fig. l is used is briefly as follows. rThe die tooth. 47 is formed in a separate machine and as stated is an exact replica of the nat ural toothto which the clasp is to be applied. They lower endot the upper tool element and the upper end ot the lower tool element are proy-*ided'with pocketsv or chambers in which the dies 42 and 44 are cast. To cast these die members the apparatus shown in Fig. l is turned so that it rests on the rear end of the base 37 and the free ends of the handles, thus bringing the tool element-s in a horizontal plane. The upper tool element is moved to the position shown in Fig. 2 and then the space between the tool elements and about. the central portion of the die tooth 47 is filled with a suitable materia-l such as moldine 55. Then a suitable material such as a metal alloy is poured into pockets and of course will take the shape of the portions of the die tooth with which this metal is in engagement. For the purpose of preventing the die metal from running through the pockets a backing member such as a sheet oit rubber 56 may be provided. After the die members are thus formed the moldine 55 is removed, the tool elements are separated, and a strip of metal such as indicated by the numeral 57 in Fig. 1 is positioned about the die tooth 47. The handles are grasped and moved towards each other so as to bring the upper die into engagement with the strip ol metal 57. As the die tooth 47 has vertical movement it of course will move down into the die 44. Pressure is now brought to bear upon the upper tool element so that the strip ot' metal 57 which is to constitute the clasp is caused to take the shape of the co-operating surface of the die tooth 47 and the die members 42 and 44. To apply this pressure the operator grasps the handles in one hand and forces them together, and the upper end of the shank 40 may be tapped by a small hammer. The tool holds the upper die against rebounding movement during the tapping operation. lith this arrangement the clasp is very accurately formed. The die members cannot possibly get out o'f alinement, making the operation a very precise one while at the same time requiring no great slrill in carrying it out.

Referring now to the embodiment shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the upper jaw 11 carries a tool element which has a post 60 fixed in the open ing 2F and a. die portion 61 on its lower end. This tool element has a portion 62 fitting closely in a seat 27 so that the tool element cannot turn, Located in the bore Q8 oi? the lower jaw member l0 is a tool element having a post a horizontally extending arm 64 and a punch 65 on the upper face of this arm and adjacent the forward end thereof. The lower tool element has a portion 66 litting closely in the seat 29. lt will be observed that-the tool element in the upper jaw is vertically ai ranged and: that in the lower jaw is horizontally arranged. As the lower jaw stops short ci. the forward end of the upper jaw these elements can be thus arranged, permitting proplOl) llo

with eonrianion tool elements such as shown Y l ius. i and the tool may be used in a ached condition time permitting ltto be handled and carried from place to .l From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings it is clear li provide a tool which is very simple in its nature and which is verj7 effective in its operation, particularly in that a number of different operations may be very accurately performed by its use.

its many changes could be made in the above con ruction and many apparently widely d rent embodiments of this invention could be made without departing-2; from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description. or shown in the accom partying,v d rawingg shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting* sense.

lt is also to be understood that the language used in the following' claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the .invention which, a matter of language, might be said 'to fall therebetween.

llihat ll claim as my invention is:

l. fr dental tool comprising a pair of levers provided with handles, a pair of jaw members carried by said levers for movement in arallelism towares and .away from each other, the lower of said jaw members termihatingl short of the forward end of the upper of said aw members, means in the overhanging` forward end of the upper jaw member for removably securing a tool element in vertical position, and means in the forward face of the lower j aw element for securing' a companion tool element in a horizontal position, said lower jaw having); a depending portion adapted to be secured to a support.

2. A dental tool comprising a. pair of crossed pivoted levers having eo-operating1 handles, a pair of jaw members carried by and connected to said levers so as to be moved towards and from each other, the forward end of the upper jaw member extending beyond the forward end of the lower of the jaw members, a vertical tool post opening in the over-hanging end of the upper jaw member, a seat at the lower end of said opening, a horizontal bore in the forward face of the lower jaw member, and a vertical seat in the forward face of the lower jaw member and about the forward end of said bore, said lower jaw having a depending portion adapted to be secured to a support.

j 3. t dental tool having a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected together, a pair of jaw members eachpivotally connected to the forward end of one lever and slidably connected .at its rear end to the other ofthe levers whereby said jaw members are always main tained parallel, the upper of saidjaw meinbers projecting forwardly beyond the fori fard .face of the lower jaw member, a vertical opening in the upper jaw member, a seat at the lower end of said opening, a bore in the forward face of the lower' jaw member and disposed in the same plane as said vertical opening, a seat in the forward face of said lower jaw member, a tool element having1 a shank fitting in said opening` and a portion fitting in said first seat, a companion tool element having a shank fitting in said bore and a portion iittinp," in said second seat, and means for removably securing said tool elements in place, said lower jaw having a depending portion adapted to be secured to a support.

4t. A dental apparatus having a pair of levers, a pair of jaws carried by said levers for movement towards and away from each other' and in parallel arrangement, the upper of said jaws projecting beyond the forward end of the lower of said jaws, means in the overhanging end of said upper jaw for securing a tool element therein, means in the forward face of said lower jaw for securing` a tool element therein, the lower of said jaws having a portion adapted to be secured to a support, a support having` in its upper end a groove adapted to receive said port-ion, and means for securing said portion in position in said groove, said support having means for holding a tool element in opposition to the tool element carried by said upper jaw.

5. A dental apparatus comprising,` a support, a die element fixed thereon against movement, a second die element opposed to the lirst one, means for moving said second die element towards the first one on a straight line, and an intermediate die element between said first and second mentioned die elements and mounted for movement parallel to the line of movement to said second die element.

6. A dental apparatus having a support, a

member carried thereby for vertical movement, a pair of levers for vertically moving said member, a die element carried by said base, a die element carried by said member, and a die element intermediate said die elements and mounted for vertical movement.

l?. A dental apparatus having a die tooth mounted for movement in a fixed line, a fixed die having a cavity corresponding` to one side of said die tooth, a movable die correspond` ing to the opposite side of said die tooth, said die tooth beingpositioned between said dies, and said second mentioned die being moviss able in a; liney parallel to the line of movement of said die tooth.V

8. A dental apparatus comprising a support, a, tool thereon having a pair of pvoted levers provi-ded with handles, j-a-W elements carried by said levers for movement. towards and Vaway from each other, a support for securing one of said jew members to said support, a die member fixed to said support, a die tooth above sind member and adapted to move towards the same, and a die member carried by the other of said jaws.

' JOHN M. CRAIGO.

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